Leigh Ann Benson

Director, Career Development

As the firm’s director of career development, Leigh Ann is responsible for firm-wide attorney training and professional development initiatives, including associate mentoring, associate orientation and integration, continuing legal education programming, and alumni engagement. 

Prior to joining the Legal Talent team and Legal Profession Services Group, Leigh Ann spent seven years as an associate in Cozen O’Connor’s Litigation Department.  Her experience as a commercial litigator includes complex commercial cases, commercial contract disputes, and business torts. She has also represented clients in appellate matters at both the state and federal level.

In 2018, Leigh Ann co-founded the Large Firm Associate Committee, which is a subcommittee of the Large Firm Management Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association. The Large Firm Associate Committee’s goal is to unite the larger Philadelphia law firms through their associates and provide a forum for Philadelphia’s large firm associates to collaborate, share, and grow together while supporting colleagues in their peer firms, the Philadelphia Bar Association, and the legal community as whole. Leigh Ann served as the committee’s co-chair from inception through 2020. 

Leigh Ann also has experience serving on various editorial boards. She is a former associate editor for TYL, the flagship publication for the Young Lawyer Division of the American Bar Association, and has been a member of the Young Lawyer Editorial Board of The Legal Intelligencer since 2016. Leigh Ann is also a member of the Villanova Law J. Willard O’Brien American Inn of Court.

Leigh Ann received her J.D. from Villanova University School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, in English from Virginia Tech. While at Villanova, Leigh Ann served as an associate editor of the Villanova Law Review.

Experience

News

Leigh Ann Benson Announced as The Legal Intelligencer Young Lawyer Editorial Chair

November 18, 2022

Leigh Ann Benson has been announced as chair of The Legal Intelligencer’s Young Lawyer Editorial Board.

Leigh Ann Benson Speaks at PBA Mentoring Launch Party

November 02, 2021

Leigh Ann Benson, director, career development at Cozen O'Connor, spoke at a mentoring launch party for the Philadelphia Bar Association.

More Than 205 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 19, 2021

Best Lawyers selected 210 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2022 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

200 Cozen O’Connor Attorneys Named Best Lawyers and Ones to Watch By The Best Lawyers In America

August 20, 2020

Best Lawyers selected 200 Cozen O’Connor lawyers from 23 of the firm’s nationwide offices for inclusion in the 2021 edition of The Best Lawyers in America© (Copyright 2020 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC).

Leigh Ann Benson Named to PA Bar Leadership Class

July 01, 2020

Cozen O’Connor is pleased to announce that Leigh Ann Benson, associate of the firm’s Commercial Litigation Department, has been selected to the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Bar Leadership Institute (BLI) 2020-2021 class.

Publications

US Supreme Court Questions Standing for ADA Claims [The Legal Intelligencer]

November 03, 2023

Stephen Miller and Leigh Ann Benson contributed an article to The Legal Intelligencer discussing the U.S. Supreme Court’s agreement to review Acheson Hotels v. Laufer.

High Court Addresses Relief for Prisoners Following Clarification of Statutory Laws [The Legal Intelligencer]

December 01, 2022

Stephen Miller and Leigh Ann Benson argue in The Legal Intelligencer that the Supreme Court’s decision in Jones v. Hendrix, expected before July 2023, should clarify - regardless of the outcome – the rights of federal prisoners to petition for habeas corpus relief of previously challenged convictions when a high court decision of statutory interpretation is applied retroactively.

The Opioid Epidemic Reaches the US Supreme Court

April 15, 2022

Leigh Ann Benson and Stephen Miller contributed an article to The Legal Intelligencer discussing how in Ruan v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether a jury should consider a doctor’s subjective intent when assessing a potential violation of the Controlled Substances Act.

Lawyers Preparing for a New Look to Practice In Our Post-Pandemic Lives Should Be Guided by ABA Formal Opinion 498 [Lawyers Representing Lawyers Blog]

March 17, 2021

Virtual practice and remote work are seemingly here to stay, in some capacity. The ABA’s Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility recently issued a formal ethics opinion addressing virtual practice to help guide practitioners. The ABA’s Formal Opinion tracks similar guidance...

High Court Considers Retroactive Application of Unanimous Jury Ruling

January 07, 2021

Stephen Miller and Leigh Ann Benson contributed an article to The Legal Intelligencer discussing how earlier this year, only two states still permitted nonunanimous jury convictions—Louisiana and Oregon.

What I Wish I Knew When I Began My Law Career [The Legal Intelligencer]

December 11, 2019

Leigh Ann Benson and other members of the Young Lawyers Editorial Board contributed an article to The Legal Intelligencer, sharing some practical advice that they would have given to themselves when they were attorneys entering the work force.

US Supreme Court Considers 'Defense Preclusion' in Trademark Dispute [The Legal Intelligencer]

December 05, 2019

Stephen Miller and Leigh Ann Benson published an article to The Legal Intelligencer discussing a current case that will be brought before U.S. Supreme Court.

Supreme Court Considers Greatest Judicial Power Grab Since 'Marbury v. Madison' [The Legal Intelligencer]

May 02, 2019

The U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether to limit the power of administrative agencies. 'Kisor v. Wilkie,' which was argued last month, is a head-on challenge to the deference afforded to an agency when interpreting its own regulations.

Superior Court Vacates Contempt and Money Sanctions Against Medmal Defense Attorney [Civil Litigation UPDATE]

October 31, 2016

Tom Wilkinson and Leigh Ann Benson, both members of Cozen O'Connor's Commercial Litigation department, discuss this case in the Pennsylvania Bar Associations Civil Litigation Update.

Events & Seminars

Past Events

Security Briefing: Mobile Cyber Security

October 07, 2015 - Haverford, PA

Education

  • Villanova University School of Law, J.D., 2014
  • Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, B.A., magna cum laude, 2011
  • Pennsylvania
  • New Jersey
  • U.S. District Court -- Eastern District of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. District Court -- New Jersey
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • American Bar Association
  • Philadelphia Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association, Bar Leadership Institute class
  • Young Lawyer Editor Board, The Legal Intelligencer